AV Case Study: STREAT
STREAT is a social enterprise helping young people get work experience. Its flagship cafe in Collingwood is now a totally better experience thanks to a Sonos commercial solution.
18 August 2026
STREAT is a leading Australian social enterprise based in Melbourne, using a portfolio of hospitality businesses – including cafés, a bakery, coffee roastery, catering, and events spaces – to deliver work-integrated training and support for young people. Profits from these operations fund holistic youth programs, helping participants build skills, confidence, and pathways in hospitality while fostering community and environmental sustainability.
This flagship Collingwood headquarters and public café serves as a bustling hub: a welcoming space for customers, a training ground for trainees, and a versatile events venue hosting weddings, parties, and workshops. Music plays a critical role in creating a warm, relaxing atmosphere for both guests and new trainees, many of whom may be entering the workforce for the first time.
BACKGROUND TO STREAT
STREAT had long relied on Sonos for multi-room audio across its venues but operated with minimal speakers at this site due to charity budget constraints. The existing setup used a couple of individual Sonos Ones, which required manual grouping and volume adjustments. In a large, acoustically challenging open space – with hard concrete floors, tables, and minimal soft furnishings – sound quality suffered from reflections, uneven coverage, and potential wi-fi interference during peak times.
As a social enterprise prioritising excellence in hospitality, STREAT needed reliable, easy-to-manage background music that enhanced the customer and staff experience without overpowering conversations or requiring constant tweaks.
“”
The Pros just feel like a step above. It provides a richer, warmer sound and allows the music to sit comfortably in the background.
— Liam Daly, Operations Manager, STREAT
NEW ERA
Luxury Audio Video, a long-term partner to STREAT (working with them for some five years now on various projects), collaborated with ADI Global Distribution to install Sonos Era 100 Pro speakers. The upgrade leveraged Sonos’ new commercial features, including Power over Ethernet (PoE), installer mode, zoning capabilities, and Trueplay room tuning.
Thanks to PoE, installation requires only one network cable that runs back to a central rack, integrated with OVRC for remote monitoring and diagnostics. The team noted the surprising ease of commissioning multiple units at once.
Derek Drinnan, Luxury Audio Video Managing Director: “Sonos product found its way into commercial environments but they were never designed for those applications. Era 100 Pro marks Sonos’s first deliberate push into the commercial sphere and it’s a winner. It’s easy to install and the Installer Mode makes commissioning straightforward. There’s no need to call in an electrician to run power to each speaker position – it’s one cable. The specially-designed ball joint mount is fantastic as well. Great industrial design.”
CREATING AMBIENCE
Feedback was immediate and positive. The day after installation, staff noticed a marked improvement.
Liam Daly, Operations Manager, STREAT: “We are delighted with the Sonos ERA 100 Pros. The difference for me is that it just provides a richer, warmer sound. It feels like the speakers aren’t having to strain as much and it allows the music to sit comfortably in the background. It’s very easy to have a conversation with your guests or clients but also have that really nice music-generated atmosphere.”
The system allows lower overall volumes while maintaining coverage, enabling guests to move freely without audio hot spots. This supports STREAT’s philosophy of exceptional hospitality and creates a welcoming environment for trainees.
Sonos made a name from leveraging wi-fi to stream music. But in a commercial environment, such as a busy cafe with plenty of competing traffic in the 2.4GHz band, PoE-powered, network-connected audio guarantees performance.
This success has prompted STREAT to consider Era 100 Pros for additional venues, adding speakers where beneficial for even better coverage.
REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE
Sonos has expanded from a consumer favourite – often deployed ad hoc in hospitality and retail – to purpose-built commercial solutions. Features like the Era 100 Pro address previous limitations in multi-speaker commercial setups while retaining the intuitive app experience that staff appreciate. It’s an approach that suits a business like STREAT down to the ground.
STREAT: streat.com.au
Luxury Audio Video: luxuryaudiovideo.com.au
ADI Global Distribution (Sonos): adiglobal.com
RESPONSES